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Business roaming advice

Get all the tips you need to avoid unexpected charges when doing business abroad.

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Before you travel

While you're abroad

If something goes wrong

Before you travel

Prepare your device & account

Any usage not included in your plan will incur additional charges. You can enable or limit these charges by setting a Spend Cap.

If your Spend Cap is set at zero, you won’t be able to roam outside of your plan’s inclusive allowances. 

Before you travel, we recommend setting your Spend Cap high enough to ensure no unexpected charges or breaks in service. To do this, you can make a simple calculation based on where you’re going, and for how long:

  • Add £1

  • Set this total figure as your Spend Cap

Visit our Spend Cap page to learn how to view and set your Spend Cap.

To use data abroad, you must have data roaming switched on in your device settings. If it’s switched off, you’ll only be able to call and text.

To prevent unwanted data roaming charges you can turn your data roaming off in the mobile data settings of your phone.

By disabling data roaming, you stop your phone from connecting to nearby networks, which means you won’t accidentally use data without your knowledge (updating apps in the background for example).

Navigate to your device settings to turn data roaming off:

  • For Apple devices, this setting is likely to be in your Mobile Services settings.
  • For Android devices, this will be in the Mobile Networks settings.

If you’re having trouble finding this, go to our device support page.

With 2G and 3G coverage being phased out globally, having a 4G device is more important than ever. 

To stay connected while you’re abroad, you’ll need a 4G device with 4G calling or VoLTE enabled in your settings.  Having a 4G device alone isn’t enough in some countries.

Use our device support page to check if your device is compatible with 4G calling (VoLTE).

Mobile Mi-Fi devices may not automatically connect to the internet when you’re roaming, here’s how to enable roaming settings for your Mi-Fi device:

  1. Type in the universal hub management URL into a browser – https://192.168.0.1
  2. Enter your unique username and password as shown on your device
  3. Enable the Data Roaming option:
    • Go to the Connection Settings, Connection Mode and enable the option to roam 
    • You’ll need to disconnect your signal on the Connections Settings page, before you can make any changes on the next step (Connection Mode).

You shouldn't use your Three Business Broadband Hub abroad.

Once outside the UK you'll be charged standard out of allowance roaming rates unless you’re in a Go Roam destination.

You'll need a PIN to access your voicemail abroad.

If you haven't set one up yet, you can choose one between 4 and 8 digits long by following the steps below:

  1. Call 123 from your phone
  2. Select 4
  3. Select 2
  4. Select 1
  5. Enter a new PIN followed by #
  6. Enter the PIN again followed by #

Scroll to While you’re abroad for instructions on accessing your voicemail.

Go Roam and roaming charges

When you use your device abroad to call, text and get online, charges depend on the destination you're in and the destination you're contacting. Destinations are grouped:

For full details see the Business Roaming Price Guide.

You can check your plan details on your bill, or by logging into My3.

Plan names that include 'Go Roam' won’t be subject to the daily roaming charge for included destinations. Fair usage applies and out-of-allowance charges may also apply.

If your plan doesn’t have roaming included, you can make use of your UK allowance abroad (subject to our fair use policy) by paying a daily roaming charge or buying a Go Roam Pass.

If you don’t have roaming included in your plan, we’ll charge a daily fee to make calls, send texts or use data in one of our Go Roam Destinations. This will give you access to your UK allowances, subject to fair usage.

  • Go Roam in Europe Destinations (EUR) = £2 per day
  • Go Roam Around the World Destinations (ATW) = £5 per day
  • Go Roam Around the World Extra Destinations (ATWX) = £7 per day
  • All other destinations are charged at a £/p per min/text/MB of data.

Go to Business roaming costs to find charges for your destination.

You can save on these charges, or pay them ahead of your trip, by buying a roaming Add-on.

Customers on Adapt plans are not charged daily roaming charges in Go Roam in Europe destinations. Roaming fair use policies still apply.

Standard daily roaming charges and fair use policies apply to all other destinations:

  • £5 daily charge to unlock your UK allowance for 24hours in Go Roam Around the World destinations. Includes VAT where applicable and is per SIM. 
  • £7 daily charge to unlock your UK allowance for 24 hours in Go Roam Around the World Extra destinations. Includes VAT where applicable and is per SIM.

Enterprise Go Roam plans differ to standard Business Go Roam, and these charges can be found on the Enterprise Roaming page. 

Enterprise plans have “Ent” in the plan name, which you can check on your bill.

 

 

In non-Go Roam destinations, you can't use your UK allowances. You'll be charged standard out of allowance roaming rates per minute/text/MB of data, which vary by destination.

Use our Destination checker to find your costs.

To prevent you from accidently spending too much, we've set a Worldwide Data Roaming limit of £45 (excluding VAT) a month.

We'll send you texts to let you know when you've reached 80% and 95% of this £45 limit. If you hit the limit, your service will be stopped.  

Contact us if you’d like this limit to be changed or removed.

If you don't want roaming cost text notifications, text 'stop' to 330. Reactivate them by texting 'start' to 330.

Roaming Add-ons

If you don't have inclusive roaming as part of your plan, you can buy a Go Roam Pass in advance of your trip to unlock your UK allowance for minutes, texts and data in our Go Roam destinations.  This will waive the Standard Daily Roaming Charge by paying it upfront.

Pay up front for 3, 7, 14, 28 or 56-day Go Roam Passes to use when you’re away. Fair use policy applies, including a maximum of 12GB data per billing month. 

If you need more data, find out more about a Data Passport below.

A Go Roam Pass activates on first use in a Go Roam destination, which includes calls, texts, and any data usage, including background app updates.

You'll get a text when your pass is activated and another when it ends. To see how many days left you have on a pass, log in to your My3 account.

You can use it for the specified number of days, which don't need to be consecutive. Leftover days stay on your account for future trips.

You can buy more than one Go Roam Pass. They will be used in the order purchased if they’re the same type. Unused passes don't expire unless you change your plan, or upgrade. 

If you have both Go Roam in Europe and Go Roam Around the World passes, the destination you’re in dictates which pass is used first.

 

A Data Passport gives you unlimited data in selected destinations for 24 hours from activation.

Calls and texts are not included and are charged at standard roaming rates, which depending on the destination will either trigger a Go Roam Daily Roaming Charge or cost £/p per minute/text.

You can buy multiple Data Passports, and each will activate automatically when you use data on your phone in a Go Roam destination. It'll then run for 24 hours, 7 days or 30 days consecutively.[1]

While you're abroad

Go Roam activates automatically when you arrive in a Go Roam destination and use your phone (either by making a call, text or using data – this includes your apps working in the background).

You'll also get a text with the roaming charges for that destination when your phone first connects to a network abroad. 

Go to Business roaming costs to find charges for your destination.

To avoid roaming charges, check our advice on Spend Caps and device settings above.

In Go Roam destinations, whether it’s inclusive in your plan, you pay a daily roaming charge, or buy a Go Roam Pass, your available usage abroad comes from your monthly UK allowance.

If you have a UK data allowance greater than 12GB, you can use up to 12GB of data in a billing month in our Go Roam destinations.

If you use 12GB and still have remaining UK data allowance available, you can continue to use your data, but this is subject to a surcharge.

Within a billing month, both your usage in the UK and abroad will go towards your total usage i.e. if you have 20GB data and have already used 10GB in the UK, you’ll have 10GB to use abroad.

Go Roam in Europe (EUR)

  • Calls and texts: up to Unlimited calls and texts within Go Roam in Europe destinations, or back to UK standard landline or mobile numbers (including voicemail).
  • Data: up to 12GB per billing month from your UK allowance.  Surcharges apply if you go over this. 

Go Roam Around the World (ATW) and Go Roam Around the World Extra (ATWX):

  • Calls and texts: up to 5,000 texts and 3,000 minutes per month to UK standard landline or mobile numbers (including voicemail).
  • Data: up to 12GB per billing month from your UK allowance. Surcharges apply if you go over this. 

For Enterprise Roaming plans, check your specific allowance details – these are for plans with “Ent” in the product name on your bill.

Log in to your My3 account to monitor your roaming usage.

Go to View all allowances from your dashboard to see a detailed breakdown of what you’ve used, and your remaining allowance.

You can also buy Add-ons in My3 if you need to.

You'll receive a text when you reach 80% and 100% of your allowance. 

To listen to messages:

  • Dial +447782 333 123
  • Enter your PIN followed by #
  • In some countries, you may be asked for your Three phone number and PIN
  • Select 2 to listen to your voicemail

If you need to reset your voicemail PIN, give us a call on +44 7782 333 333 (standard roaming charges apply).

All calls are diverted to your voicemail free of charge, but standard roaming charges may apply for listening to messages.

If you're working or roaming in the EU/EEA, listening to your voicemail messages will be included in your allowance.

You can use your allowance to contact a UK number (starting 01, 02, 03 or a standard UK mobile) from any Go Roam destination.

From Go Roam in Europe destinations:

You can use your allowance to call and text back to the UK, a UK mobile or another Go Roam in Europe destination.

From Go Roam Around the World (ATW) or Around the World Extra (ATWX) destinations:

Calls back to the UK (numbers starting 01, 02, 03 or a standard UK mobile) are included in your allowance up to 3,000 minutes (per billing month).

Remember to add international dialling codes to any numbers you use. Always put a + in front of the number you're calling, followed by the country code. And take off the first digit from the area code, which is usually a 0.

Calls or texts to other international destinations are not included. You’ll incur out-of-bundle charges per minute. Go to Business roaming costs to find charges for your destination.

If you and a colleague travel and call each other on UK mobiles, your allowance is included no matter the Go Roam destination(s).

In our Go Roam in Europe destinations, you can make calls both back to the UK and to other standard landline and mobile numbers in those Go Roam in Europe Destinations as part of your allowance. (eg France to France or France back to the UK)

Our other plans do not include international calls or texts, only back to the UK and UK mobiles. Out of Bundle charges will be applied if you call or text any other type of number.

Go to Business roaming costs to find charges for your destination.

Go Roam Around the World Extra launched on 26 June 2024.  This new band in our Go Roam product allows you to access your UK allowance in 92 new destinations for a daily roaming charge of £7.

Prior to 26 June, 2024, you would have been charged £/p per MB, minute, text rates for those 92 destinations.

If you joined/upgraded before 1 October 2021 we won't apply this daily roaming charge and you will continue to pay the £/p per MB, minute, text rates.  

To understand all your out-of-bundle charges, see our Roaming Price Guide.

If something goes wrong

If you need to get in touch with us while you’re abroad, it’s best to WhatsApp us or chat with us online. 

For all your options, see our contact us page.  

Inadvertent roaming happens when your device connects to a network in a different location to where you are.

This can happen if you reside or travel near an international border. You'll receive text notifications in any destination network you connect to (whether inadvertent or not). By the time these come through however, you may already have been charged.

To avoid this, turn off data roaming on your device and look out for any notification messages.

Inadvertent roaming in Ireland

If you live near the Northern Irish border, you might connect to a Republic of Ireland network by mistake. To avoid extra charges, we've excluded the Republic of Ireland from our daily roaming charges and the 12GB fair use limit will not apply.  

First, check our advice on Spend Caps, device settings and roaming limits above.

You can troubleshoot on our device support pages:

  1. Find your device from the list, and select the ‘Fix a problem’ tab
  2. Select the ‘Signal, calls, messaging, roaming or a SIM’ guide and follow the instructions

If you're still having issues, contact us.

If you’re caught in a natural disaster or international emergency while roaming abroad, please get in touch to see how we can support you.

Please note that we may have already taken action if it’s a widely known event.

Important information

  • Permanent Roaming

    If a User roams exclusively in any international destinations for any two complete months in a rolling 12-month period or excessively, Three may suspend international roaming for that User(s) or Customer, meaning that User(s) or Customer will no longer be able to use their Device or allowances abroad.

    Return to reference